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  Volume Six, Number Three - May, 2001

This year, AmyÍs birthday passed quietly.  In the early morning hours of April 26th, several thousand loaves of bread were delivered to the usual places near Cape Town and George Æ each loaf with a special sticker attached, ñRemembering Amy ... 25 Cents.î  Riding security on our bread truck through the sometimes dangerous streets of Guguletu, Ntembeko Peni and Easy Nofemela, two people involved in AmyÍs killing who were released on amnesty in 1998, were remembering Amy and the difficult twists and turns their lives have taken from pain and disillusionment to hope and purpose.  And Æ halfway around the world Æ our family also remembered Amy, with love and with pride for her and for the growth of her Foundation and its impact in South Africa and America.

We have reached a new point on the maturity curve as a Foundation.  In early April, we signed a landmark four-year agreement with USAID, just as our good friends Ken Yamashita and Stacy Rhodes prepare to hand off their leadership of USAID-South Africa to move on to new lives.  Their support of our work has been invaluable.  Similarly, Ambassador Delano Lewis departs South Africa in June.  He is the third Ambassador we have known in our South African journey.  All have become friends.   Some of our projects and programs have been serving youth and their communities for three years.  Thousands are served and hundreds rely on us for the salaries which support their households. 

We have achieved a level of size and sophistication which demands our full-time commitment and a constant effort to raise more money to sustain our work in the face of unceasing need.  We are thankful for the opportunities to serve those in need and for the many Foundation friends who continue to support our work.  We must constantly fight the presumption that with size comes security.  We know vividly that the larger the Foundation becomes, the greater the pressure is to support and sustain it.  We are sincerely grateful for every gift we receive.

Our expanding relationships with some of AmericaÍs great colleges, universities and their feeder schools are exciting and filled with promise for our future work and for our responsibility for building productive bridges from the United States to South Africa. We are thrilled with these possibilities and are planning to invest more time in their fulfillment.  Each year, more interns from these institutions charge our people and our work with high energy, dedication and friendship.

This NEWSLETTER reflects our emerging diversity and the quiet maturing which is taking place within our organization.  The pieces written by Kim Biehl, Molly Biehl Corbin, Ashleigh Murphy, Renatta Van Rooyen, and Nwabisa Bonxo add texture and reflect growth.

As we celebrate a daughterÍs birthday, we acknowledge with pride and humility the changing face and growing capacity of the Foundation that shares her name.

GOLF AS A CLASSROOM

On Thursday, April 5th, our driving range at Khayelitsha Golf Club was crowded with boys and girls Æ many in their school uniforms Æ and television camera crews.  Watching intently as the kids hit golf balls was a young white golfer who then approached each boy and girl with some gentle coaching and advice on the art of the golf swing.

At twenty-one years of age, Trevor Immelman was spending his first hours in a black informal settlement and was conducting his first clinic for black and colored youth in the nation of his birth.  The newest professional golf phenom from South Africa is accustomed to the rigors of international tournament golf and to the world of corporate golf events Æ but was astonished to discover a beautiful golf driving range in a black informal settlement barely fifteen minutes from his family home near Cape Town.

Moreover, he was amazed to learn that historically-denied, poor youth would be interested in learning and playing a game that had been reserved exclusively to white South Africans for generations.

In the three hours he spent with the kids, Trevor did a fine job and related comfortably to them.  Boys were in awe of him. Girls giggled and said he was cute.  Older men nodded respectfully as he hit shot after perfect shot.

Trevor Immelman came to our Khayelitsha Golf Club to teach a horde of township kids something about golf.  The television cameras were there to record this unusual event.  As the sunny and perfect afternoon slipped by, the questions became clear:  who is teaching whom here and who is learning from whom?

The ñHidden Golfers of Khayelitshaî who conceptualized the driving range project were correct when they claimed that golf can bring South AfricaÍs races together.  Moreover, young Trevor Immelman experienced the value of golf as a classroom.

It was a great day for each of us who was present.

A NOTE FROM THE PROJECT MANAGER

By Ashleigh Murphy

Human Rights Day was celebrated in South Africa on Wednesday, March 21st.

In this new nation, holidays occur on a particular date as contrasted with the US practice of moving holidays to create long weekends with minimum disruption of work schedules.  So, a South African holiday is celebrated on its date Æ even if the entire working world must come to a halt on a Wednesday.  As frustrating as this can be, I have come to realize that South AfricaÍs future depends on remembering from where it all began.  So, Wednesday was Human Rights Day, in remembrance of those 69 who lost their lives in the Sharpeville Massacre Æ on March 21, 1960.

When asked to fill the Project Manager post, my charter was to put in place systems to create a more professional environment.  It has required patience and determination to instill a planning discipline, particularly in our township program managers, who lack training in this important activity.  So the decision of our after-school teachers to host an all-school holiday celebration, including song, dance and speeches by struggle participants, required a special level of planning and preparation and a lot of work for some of us.

But my heart soared long and far on this day.  On this day, 500 children from 4 of our after-school programs assembled to celebrate rights for which people had died in 1960.  They had practiced their dances for weeks and their nervous smiles showed how excited they were in anticipation of their performances.  Each child listened carefully to speeches from three members of the movement in Xhosa (their mother tongue) to permit full comprehension of how South Africa came to be what it is today.

The dances were amazing - not one child missed a beat Æ and the energy of the crowd urged everyone on.  Human rights - including the right to live a happy and healthy life - were being celebrated by 500 children, gathered together to perform and to share.  They werenÍt on the streets, they werenÍt being subjected to violence; they were enjoying the day.

Prevention of youth violence is at the heart of the Foundation, and on this day we succeeded in our work.  And, after nine months as Project Manager, I was rewarded with a well-planned, well-attended and well-organized event.  At such times, I am keenly aware of what I am here to contribute and of the joy that follows a job well done.

From The Community Baking Trust

By Renatta Van Rooyen

I, the writer, was asked to write a story about a very special bakery.  Now, I am not a good writer and cannot always put into words the emotional experience that I am about to tell you of.  What started out for me as just another job seems to have turned into a fulltime passion.  This is what happens to people who come into contact with any and all aspects of this Bakery.  There is a certain magic to this place and its people.  Really, if we look carefully and are open to this power, there are magic fairies and angels out there.  Exploring this magic world of this special Bakery makes a person realize how much good and giving there is within you.  ItÍs a good feeling. 

My introduction to this world was quite normal and uneventful, until about the third day I was here.  Then it started, the realization that everybody involved with making this very symbolic bread is special.  The mixer, the baker, the slicer.  This same magic touches everybody that inhabits the world of the Amy Biehl Foundation Trust, even the occasional visitor to this Bakery.  However, most of the guests to our world stay on and become part thereof.  We are by no means an island, but rather a larger family that opens its arms wide for all who want to experience this magical feeling of goodwill towards your fellow human beings.  The founders of the Amy Biehl Foundation Trust first introduced this magic when they met each other years ago.  Then came the little fairies and one of them decided to come to South Africa and introduce this magic to our world.  This wonderful magic has its origins in a very bad event, but it spread so much joy and relief as its end product. 

This same magic touched a young man called Mkulili so much he decided to improve his own situation and circumstances.  Now Mkulili is an employee of Community Baking Trust and for this previously unemployed young man this job brought great relief.  He now had his own room, built from wood and corrugated iron and is no longer sharing a room with his sister and her children.  He had returned to school to finish his education.  He now can send money to his ailing father in the rural areas of the Transkei, and also look after his brother who lost a leg in an accident. 

This same magic was evident when Edmen and Thokozile had to move their houses within twenty-four hours or risk losing it all.  When the drivers of loads of AmyÍs Bread decided to forfeit their much needed sleep to break down, move and re-erect their houses.  When the management of this company decided it is not too much to rent a huge tent so Edmen could have a roof over his familyÍs heads that night.  The magic that teaches an ordinary man to come to his fellow beingÍs aid when needed.  It spread its power once again when a bakery driver decided to go without rest to help a community make their donated peace park habitable again so that the kids could have a safe place to play.  This magic has touched driver, Jeffrey, so much that when he goes home after his shift on the truck, he carries on visiting his clients and spreading the influence of this calling because also to him its not just a job anymore. 

In other ways this magic has touched countless others Æ the kids in the different programs, the hungry family who gets a loaf of bread for free, the shebeen owner who gives a free condom to help prevent HIV/AIDS, the recipients of our donation bread.  Individuals like Hilton Meyer and Mama Evelyn.  As we walk on into the future nearly all of who have and still are experiencing this magic will spread it further.  It touches our families, our friends, our children, our lovers. 

To the Founders of this magic we are grateful that they are sharing it with us.  None of us will ever forget Amy, not only for her work in South Africa, but for her legacy and epilogue.

My Journey to the USA

By Nwabisa Bonxo

I left Cape Town, South Africa on 14th of January 2001 departing from Cape Town International Airport.  I arrived in the USA on the 16th of January 2001.  I was very excited to have such an opportunity to visit abroad.

On the 16th of January, Peter was waiting for me at the airport to welcome me. He greeted me and accompanied me to the car, and we drove off to La Quinta in the California desert where they have their welcoming, warm and peaceful home.  As usual, it was jokes all the way and site seeing at the same time.  Linda was waiting at the house and when I saw Linda, I was happy and excited.

Being in the States for me was an eye opener and a learning process as well.  Because it broadened my thinking and opinion on the issues we deal with everyday.

It was a life changing experience visiting the Amy Biehl Charter School which is in New Mexico where I met Tony who is the co-founder of the school.  Also while in New Mexico, I was fortunate to share my views on a project that the Amy Biehl Foundation might be venturing into involving the construction of an adobe hotel in the wine country outside of Cape Town.  It has ever since interested me so much that I would like to be involved in the construction business.

On our return journey to La Quinta, California, we spent the night in Wickenburg, Arizona where I met Aunt Lulu who is Linda BiehlÍs sister.  From there we went back to La Quinta and we made preparations for an upcoming speaking engagement where we were invited to meet a group of visitors from Ireland to engage in a dialogue on conflict resolution and how we can bring about inner peace, togetherness and harmony in our communities.  Through this experience, I realized that conflict is everywhere but it is not essential.  Let us, instead, learn to rise and overcome these obstacles in life.

Also while in the US, I shared in the celebration of PeterÍs birthday with the family at large and spent my last days at Kim Biehl and her fianc³, JameÍs, home. IÍve since exchanged letters with my new friends in the development and empowerment community and I am looking forward to seeing them again.

IN THEIR OWN WORDS -- HOW SOUTH AFRICAN YOUTH VIEW OUR PROGRAMS

By Kim Biehl

I was fortunate enough to spend two weeks in Cape Town in February.  This time, instead of writing about my own thoughts and experiences, I thought I would offer our stateside supporters an opportunity to learn a bit about a few of the FoundationÍs 20+ programs as perceived and articulated by the participants themselves.  During my visit, I interviewed young people involved in 5 of the current projects ÆIntshinga After-School School (the Girl Guides in particular), Buthisizwe Training Porgram, Khayelitsha Driving Range, Youth Reading Role Models, and Ncedisizwe Sewing Cooperative.  The questions asked were basic so as to be similarly interpreted by our South African friends and our American readers.  The following is a compilation of responses in the very words used by the young South Africans interviewed.

What is the purpose of the program as you see it?

  1. To be the role models of the school.
  2. To keep us safe and away from street violence.  To empower us with skills.  To prepare us for an  unpredictable future and the inevitable things that come with it.  To help us learn more about other people.
  3. To curb violence and prepare our youth for a bright future.
  4. To get inside the communities and search for the talent.  To nurture the skills that are already there.

What is the benefit of the program to you?

  1. I feel empowered and above all, it has stimulated my self esteem.  Today I know my values.  I know what I want out of life because of this project.
  2. It is very educational and we have time to meet people from other countries.  This project teaches us to respect, care, share, and trust so that we can be the presidents of tomorrow.
  3. It is making us not be shy to talk to people that we donÍt know.  It has showed us the way to go and to know right and wrong so that we can be tomorrowÍs leaders. 
  4. You get to know people.  We were scared of white people.  It has given us confidence.
  5. We gain practical experience.

 What is the biggest challenge for you in participating in the program?

  1. It is when I have to present myself in front of foreign people   To get to know people with different values.  But it is great to know that there are people out there that care about me and my future.
  2. It is when I have to do something in front of other people. I am shy but I have to cope with it.
  3. The biggest challenge is to keep away from the streets.

 If you were not participating, what would you be doing?

  1. Reading my books.
  2. I would be at home, bored with myself.  And somehow I would be in a lot of complicated situations.  Some of the people who used to be my friends are alcoholics, parents, prisoners, and some have passed away.  I am on track with my school work because of the encouragement I get from the teachers that work with us.
  3. I would be at home watching ñThe Boldî or ñDays of Our Livesî.  I think I would be one of those girls who gets early pregnancy.
  4. I would be sitting on the streets with noting to do. I would be drinking and getting pregnant.
  5. I am quite involved with other projects like HIV awareness and AIPGE (African Institute for Personal Growth and Excellence) to help build self-esteem and motivate young people.
  6. Going out to look for work.

 What is your opinion of the Amy Biehl Foundation? How is it viewed by the community?

  1. The community appreciates the FoundationÍs thoughtfulness.  It has really brought a light to the end of the tunnel.  There is a big change.
  2. My opinion of the Foundation is that itÍs very good to us because in the two hours that we are here, we learn good things.  The community views it as good because it keeps the children out of dirty things.
  3. It is the very best foundation IÍve ever known all my life here in South Africa. When we are here, it is like we are home because the teachers are like our grandmothers and mothers.  They are always there for us.
  4. This is like a miracle for us.  We thank the Biehls and the teachers for wasting their time to come and teach us.  The community is very proud of what we are doing because they know we are not wasting time when we come here.
  5. Most people feel happy about the Foundation.  There are people who feel that the Foundation chooses people other than them to give money to.  They are people who donÍt know about the Foundation.

What is your hope for the future?

  1. I want to be a lawyer.
  2. I want to be a social worker to help people  who have no homes or have been abused by their families.
  3. To make the kids responsible people.
  4. I hope for people to more aware of things that are happening around them. I hope for violence, crime and corruption to end.  I hope that parents teach their kids about HIV/AIDS and teenage pregnancy.  I hope that all of my dreams come true and everybody elseÍs, too.
  5. My hope is that when I am old enough, I can help the people with HIV/AIDS and those who donÍt have homes.
  6. To succeed
  7. Ubuntu. To help my neighbor. To live happily.
  8. To be the best sewers in South Africa.
  9. IÍd like to be a big business woman.
  10. IÍd like to be a fashion designer.

 AN EFFECTIVE PROGRAM PARTNERSHIP, EXCHANGING PROGRAM MODELS AND FIELD EXPERIENCES

By Molly Biehl Corbin

  A Presentation to Family Literacy FoundationÍs Board of Directors, 3/19/01

 The program partnership between Family Literacy Foundation (FLF) and the Amy Biehl Foundation began in July of 1998.  My parents, Peter and Linda Biehl of the Amy Biehl Foundation, learned of the Youth Reading Role Models program through my past employ with FLF and saw it as a natural fit within the Amy Biehl FoundationÍs holistic approach to violence prevention and youth empowerment.

 It also fit well within FLFÍs hopes of expanding the benefits of the Youth Reading Role Models program throughout San Diego and beyond.  FLF was then in the process of fine tuning our training manual, developing a training video and looking for ways to expand the program benefits without constant hands on involvement.

 I traveled to South Africa in July of 1998 with manual and laptop in hand.  I was able to train 2 Community Coordinators and a handful of youth readers across a weekÍs time.  I had brought 2 duffle bags of books donated from friends of the Amy Biehl Foundation to help develop and/or supplement a childrenÍs library in Guguletu township.  I also spent time editing the training manual to better suit the specific needs of the community and help make the program a success.

 The easiest part of the training of the South African youth was the ñwhysî and ñhowsî of reading aloud with young children.  The participants genuinely enjoyed the training exercises -- which included a read aloud session in which a young man read a moving childrenÍs story about Nelson Mandela -- and seemed to understand the importance of the program.

 The most difficult part of the weekÍs training session was to help the Community Coordinators envision how all the various program components Æ from the use of public transport to the involvement of Guest Readers Æ would come together across the semester when theyÍd never seen it done before and would have no one to walk them through it as they went.

 I left South Africa feeling good about the eagerness of the youth to have the responsibility of reading to young children and their hope to be seen in a positive light as role models in their community. The fact that the young children would benefit immensely through early exposure to reading was also exciting.  Quality childrenÍs books are essentially non-existent in township schools and homes, so any exposure is extremely valuable.

 I wasnÍt at all sure, however, once I left what would happen with the program itself.  There were so many challenges that were so different from those faced by the inner-city communities of San Diego that it truly was unclear as to whether or not the program could succeed.

 What did happen was an 8-week pilot in which the Community Coordinators tried to implement the program just as it was designed by Family Literacy Foundation.  The pilot was followed by a redesigning period so that the program could work in this community with very specific challenges and needs.  This redesigning period was critical in the survival of the program.

 What has evolved is a program -- not extremely different from San DiegoÍs version -- in which there are regular trainings, the library is used, parents participate as Guest Readers and Graduation Celebrations are exciting events. Still, there are numerous differences from the original program design, the biggest of which is that the program is taking place during school hours and within an elementary school setting where the oldest children of the school read aloud to the youngest children of the school as volunteers with the permission of their teachers.

 I returned to Cape Town for an official ñProgram Launchî of Guguletu TownshipÍs Youth Reading Role Models program in the summer of 2000.The assistant to South AfricaÍs Minister of Education was the keynote speaker.  Over 100 people were present including a childrenÍs choir, a marimba band, youth readers, parents, teachers, school administrators and media.

 While many of the original program components had evolved or were omitted, I delighted in the fact that the essence of ñsharing the joy of readingî was clearly maintained. In the whole course of the program launch the word ñtutorî was never used, nor was the word ñteachî.  Rather the speakers commented on the development of relationships between youth and children, the importance of the development of the imagination through reading aloud, and the value of the early and unintimidating exposure to reading skills for the young children.  At the time of the launch in the summer of last year the program was in 8 schools. Within each school, approximately 6 readers were reading aloud to 30-40 children in 4 classrooms on a weekly basis.  The program has since been implemented in 18 schools!

 An interview with a teacher involved with the program clearly indicates its value and universal applicability.  When asked, ñWhat is the purpose of the program as you see it?î the teacher responded ñ...to help develop responsibility and the skill of reading...î and ñ...to utilize the library to find books of interest for young children..î.  When asked of the program benefits, she replied ñ...to help kids understand English; comprehension Æ even in reading math problems; and, builds confidence...î 

 So, as you can see, the benefits are not too dissimilar to those that we see here in San Diego and the participants and educators love it!  ItÍs easily one of the Amy Biehl FoundationÍs most effectively implemented and successful programs since they had a thorough manual from which to work as well as the autonomy to evolve into a program model that works for the specific needs of South AfricaÍs township communities. 

ACTIVITY HIGHLIGHTS, AT A GLANCE

1/3           

 Biehls attend initial 2001 emergency response training class at Coachella Valley High School.  Now more fully-integrated into the school class calendar, the course has 58 students enrolled, with 3 instructors from American Red Cross, Riverside County Chapter.

1/11            

Biehls meet with staff members associated with the House International Relations Committee in the Rayburn Office Building on Capitol Hill. Documentary film ñLong NightÍs Journey Into Dayî is screened and discussion of Foundation programs follows.  Zach Biehl attends session.

1/ 11           

  US premiere screening of ñTutu and Franklin: A Journey Towards Peaceî is hosted by the Smithsonian Anacosta Museum and Center for African American History and Culture in Washington, DC. The documentary film Æ made by Foundation friends Mary Braxton Joseph and Renee Poissant Æ features Foundation staffer, Samora April, and youth from South Africa, Senegal and the United States.

  1/18

Foundation staffer, Nwabisa Bonxo, accompanies Biehls for a visit to the Amy Biehl Charter School in Albuquerque, NM.  Students are engaged in discussions of the meaning of ñwealthî and are fascinated with NwabisaÍs concept of wealth as a product of sharing all that one has with others who need help.  Opportunities for teaching and student exchange are discussed and a mural art exchange is planned.

  1/24

Biehls involve Nwabisa in Stanford University-based ñProject Hopeî, with 18 citizens of Northern Ireland engaged in a reconciliation struggle over several days on the Stanford campus.  This innovative project is the creation of StanfordÍs Byron Bland and Fred Luskin.  The Biehls share their reconciliation story and observe the process for possible application in South Africa.

 

1/26

Beloved Foundation colleague and friend, Henry Williams, suffers a serious stroke in Cape Town.  Managing Director of our Buthusizwe Construction Services Trust, Henry is an invaluable asset to our youth work and cannot be replaced.  We hope for his recovery, which will be a long and difficult process for Henry and his family.

2/6

Biehls meet with Joyce Kaufman, PhD Æ Director, Whittier College Scholars Program Æ to initiate planning for an innovative conflict resolution initiative involving teams of South African and Whittier youth engaged with Los Angeles area high schools and students.

2/13

Linda and Peter address some 200 young women and mothers Æ members of the National Charity League Æ in Irvine, CA.

2/14

Biehls talk to members (and spouses) of the Dick Richard Breakfast Club in Newport Beach, CA, before departing for Cape Town later in the day.

 2/17 

Linda and Peter share insights with over 700 students and faculty of Semester at Sea on shipboard during a high wind in Cape Town Harbor. Interns from University of Washington join the Biehls in sharing their experiences assisting Foundation programs in the Cape Flats.

2/20

 Ken Yamashita and USAID team begin two-day visit of Foundation projects funded by USAID-South Africa.

2/23

 Foundation entertains a visiting economic development group from Egypt.

2/23

  Linda does radio interview from Nico Molan Theatre in Cape Town.

2/25

Kim Biehl and colleague, Joan Liggett, arrive in Cape Town from Los Angeles, to begin a working vacation with the Foundation.

2/28

 Biehls attend South African premiere screening of ñRemember the Titansî, hosted by United States Consul-General and Mrs. Stephen J. Nolan in Cape Town.

3/1

 USAID team visits Cape Town for final negotiation of a 4-year agreement with the Foundation.

3/5

  Biehls attend final holes and awards presentation for first non-white golf tournament ever hosted at Mowbray Golf Club, Cape Town.  This historic competition Æ organized by Lungile Mbalo of our Khayelitsha Golf Club and sponsored by Alan Shuman, Western Cape Brand Manager, Bells Scotch Æ attracts 90 township participants. Linda and Lungile speak to enthusiastic participants, and Kim Biehl hands out prizes.  A truly great event!

3/6

 Kim Biehl and Joan Liggett deliver beautiful fabric donated by American designer David Dart to members of the Ncedisizwe Sewing Cooperative.  The sewers are thrilled with the fabric and at the promise of a continued relationship with David Dart.  Special thanks to Anna Song and Ximena Spivey for initiating this effort and providing the materials.

3/8

 Jeff Bernel and Jim Davis of Gigot Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, Mendoza School of Business, University of Notre Dame arrive in Cape Town to plan for 2001 summer intern program.

3/8

 Kim, Joan, Linda and Peter depart Cape Town for Los Angeles.

3/13

 Alastair Rendall, Cape Town architect for Lynedoch Primary School and Community Centre, arrives in La Quinta, CA to begin 2-week stay in America.

3/19

  Biehls join Foundation friend and South Africa supporter, Dr. Herma Williams - Associate Provost, Gordon College - in Boston to address a student body convocation and to participate in classes and campus life at this human service-oriented liberal arts college.

3/21

 Biehls meet with Rep. Amo Houghton (R-NY), Courtney Alexander and staffers of the House International Relations Committee, Betty Bumpers and staff of Peace Links, during a visit to Washington, DC.

3/22

 Linda and Peter visit with Elizabeth McGovern, University of Maryland and with staff at the South African Embassy before departing Washington for New York.

3/23

 Biehls lunch with Network Refugees, Inc. partners Claudia Pryor and Gregory Branch in New York to discuss a film documentary project on reconciliation for PBS and ABC ñNightlineî series titled ñLiving Boldî. Network Refugees is created to free its talented producer-founders from network news programming constraints to produce important stories involving persons of color.  In 1993-94, Claudia Pryor was executive producer of ñInside the Struggle: The Amy Biehl Storyî for ABC News ñTurning Pointî. Her associate producer, Daniel Green, is now a producer with Ted Koppel and ñNightlineî.

3/23

 Prior to departing for Cape Town, Linda and Peter meet with Vincent Mai, Foundation supporter and friend of South Africa.

 3/28  

New 4-year agreement signed by USAID in Pretoria which provides for an innovative separation strategy between USAID and the Foundation, in 2005.

4/2 

Biehls begin a fulfilling 2-day visit various Foundation projects and Community Baking Trust in George, Southern Cape. Arranged by David Webber and Laura Harley, the visit featured great people working hard in our community service initiatives and concluded with a live radio interview before flight-time April 3.

4/5 

An exploratory meeting is held between the Biehls and Old Mutual Insurance Foundation to consider opportunities for partnering in economic development work in South Africa.

4/6 

 Biehls meet with Virginia Peterson, Director, Department of Social Services, Western Cape Province, to arrange an internship in which Foundation will place an American intern with the Department for 3 months to analyze Department strategy and programs and to identify opportunities for further linkages with the Foundation.  The Department of Social Services presently helps to subsidize the FoundationÍs after school schools.

4/7

Linda participates in an HIV/AIDS seminar conducted by Rotary International and reports on the FoundationÍs HIV/AIDS prevention programs.

4/7

US Speaker of the House Hastert and a Congressional Delegation arrive in South Africa for a fact-finding tour.  They will visit Foundation programs at Buthisizwe Centre with Ashleigh Murphy an staff on April 9.

4/9

 Biehls address students and faculty of Washington College in Chestertown, MD hours after their return to the United States, then meet with students who have spent time in South Africa.  Washington College is the oldest and only educational institution in America to have been given permission from George Washington to use his name.

 4/10

After flying to St. Louis, MO, Linda and Peter deliver the 2001 Mary Byles Endowed Lecture on moral and ethical values in modern society, at Maryville University. The Biehls are introduced by Dr. Keith Lovin, Maryville President, to an audience including Foundation supporters and friends, the Kendall family, and St. Louis teachers who have worked with the Foundation in Cape Town.

4/11

Peter Biehl begins over 2 days of speaking/questions and answer sessions in middle schools, high schools, and the KendallÍs Methodist Church Æ including an impressive program at Wydown Middle School organized by Gloria Sadler and her students and featuring advanced technologies for communication and Internet link-ups. Visits to MICDS and Park South High School are also memorable.

4/12

Larry Kendall arranges a discussion of youth violence prevention with a cross-section of St. LouisÍ most outstanding community leadership devoted to this challenge.  Opportunities are identified through which approaches developed by our Foundation can be applied to violence prevention efforts in St. Louis.  A continuing partnership is envisioned.

4/19

Biehls participate in an innovative conference on arts and their role in building dialogue across difference, organized by Dr. James Clowes, Director, Comparative History of ideas Program University of Washington, Seattle, WA.

4/21

Biehls join Jim and Erin Clowes and former Foundation intern, Eric Williams, presently with the William and Melinda Gates Foundation, for breakfast prior to departure from Seattle.  Among discussion topics are future opportunities for ñengagedî tourism in places like South Africa.

4/22

Linda and Peter speak to members of the Mission Viejo Unitarian Universalist Church and their guests, prior to joining Kim Biehl at her ñWorking Wardrobesî charitable program for men in final stages of restoration following prison stays, substance abuse and homelessness.  Over 100 men are given counseling, haircuts, manicures, massages, new wardrobes and job interviews in a very touching program coordinated by Kim. The Amy Biehl Foundation donates lunch for the event and Linda and Peter speak briefly about ñtransformation.î

4/26

On AmyÍs birthday, her parents participate in a screening of ñLong NightÍs Journey into Dayî and speak to students, faculty and staff of the Georgetown University M.S. in Foreign Service Program Æ hosted and organized by former Foundation Project Manager, Trevor Murphy.

4/27

Biehls spend a stimulating day with faculty, staff and students at the James Macgregor Burns Academy of Leadership at the University of Maryland, College Park.  All students participating have been or will journey to South Africa to develop research projects as part of the program of this very special Academy.

4/27

Ambassador Sheila Sisulu hosts a gala South African Freedom Day Celebration at the Embassy in Washington.  Minister of Finance, Trevor Manuel greets the Biehls, along with Ambassador Sisulu.

This has been a very busy and productive period in the FoundationÍs continuing evolution and history.  The opportunities to create long-term partnerships with some of AmericaÍs most respected and impacting universities and colleges will serve the Foundation and its interests in South Africa and America for many years to come.  Student interns are a unique and important renewable resource to our Foundation and Æ in working with them Æ we are constantly reminded of Amy and are always invigorated by their energy, integrity and ideas.

  Were it not for the loss of our dear friend, Henry Williams, to the work of the Foundation, this would have been one of the most rewarding periods in our history.

 MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS, BABY CLOTHING URGENTLY NEEDED

  Continued expansions of our music education program and the requirement for creation of community youth orchestras in townships and informal settlements make it essential that we renew our call for donation of new or used musical instruments or of cash for their acquisition.

Excellent new management energy and focus is creating an enormous demand for the Amy Biehl Foundation TrustÍs music theory and musical instrument instruction services among township youth and under-resourced public primary schools.  Oversight by Solomon Makosana and Samora April is producing a demand for musical instruments which we can no longer supply.  Consequently, we must ask for help from Foundation friends in order not to turn youth away.

In addition, our colleagues at ñOptionsî Æ a counseling and support service for pregnant young women and new mothers Æ have an urgent need for baby clothing for babies who otherwise have no clothing available to them after birth.  Located in George, Southern Cape, Options has been helpful to our Community Baking Trust in building distribution for ñAmyÍs Breadî, and its new mothers are recipients of donated bread from our George bakery.



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Donations can be sent to:
Amy Biehl Foundation
P.O. Box 66
San Marcos, CA 92079-0066
Phone: 949.650.5356
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